Rolling mill



April 3, 1934. J R, GEORGE 1,953,165

ROLLING MILL Filed March 5, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 9n znto'r denome R gee/age J. R. GEORGE April 3, 1934.

ROLLING MILL Filed March 5, 1950 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Wave-n10? Jen ome R, Qeorz ge Alior'ruzq Patented Apr. 3, 1934 1,953,165 )ROLLING MILL Jerome R. George, Worcester, Mass., assignor to Morgan Construction Company, Worcester, Mass, a corporation of Massachusetts 16 Claims.

The present invention relates in general to rolling mills, and more particularly to the main-' tenance of roll alinement therein.

In rolling mill practice, it is well recognized that especially bad effects, both on the rolled product and, on the rolling apparatus, are produ'ced when the axes of a pair of cooperating reducing rolls become crossed, in consequence of any lateral displacement of one or the other of said rolls from its normal operating position. In other words, it is of prime importance that the axis of each roll be at right angles to the direction of travel of the stock through said rolls; otherwise the stock may emerge from said rolls in adeformed condition, or with a tendency to twist, and furthermore, there will be stresses and strains of abnormal proportions set up in the rolling apparatus, particularly in an endwise direction due to the powerful screwing action between the'stock and the crossed rolls.

My invention resides in a combination and arrangement of parts whereby the rolls, in the event of their becoming crossed, or laterally displaced, are subjected automatically to .forces which reestablish the parallelism of the roll axes. Other and further objects and advantages of the invention willbe apparent from the following detailed description thereof, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which- Fig. 1 is a schematic viewin side elevation, partly in section, showing my invention as applied to a stand of backed-up rolls.

Fig. 2 is a view showing the roll assembly in a plane at right angles to that of Fig. 1.

'Fig. 3 is a detached view showing contact devices, at the ends of the working rolls, by means of which certain adjustment devices, as hereinafter described, are made operative.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged detail view of the contact devices.

Fig. 5 is a wiring diagram. Like reference characters refer to like parts in the different figures. Referring first to Figs. 1 and .2, the invention is here shown as applied to a backed up rolling mill of conventional type, and consisting of 1870; as described in the aforesaid patent, the

2 plane containing the axes of the twoworking Application March 3, 1930, Serial No. 432,797

rolls 2, 3 may be ofiset slightly, asshown in Fig. 1, from the plane containing the axes of the two backing-up rolls 4, 5,such an arrangement having a stabilizing effect on the working rolls 2, 3, in that it substantially prevents, in one direction at least, their undue lateral displacement. As shown in Fig. 2, the working rolls 2, 3 may be driyen in any suitable manner, as. for example, by connecting them to the usual intermeshing driving pinions 6, 6, one of which is coupled to the shaft of a driving motor 7.

As best shown in Fig. 2, the backing-up rolls 4 and 5 preferably make their contactwith the working rolls 2 and 3 respectively, by means of spaced collars 8, 8, so as to present an intermediate open space 9 in matching relation to the z one of the working rollscontact with the stock a. The collars 8, 8 on the backing-up rolls 4 and 5 provide the necessary support and resistance to pressure to insure the proper operation of the working rolls 2 and 3; however, any scale which collects on the surfaces of said working rolls in their zones of contact with the stock a is not carried, by rotation of said rolls, into contact with the backing-up rolls 4 and 5, and hence the tendency of the working rolls to become pitted and roughened on account of said scale being ground into their surfaces is largely eliminated.

In the arrangement of apparatus herein illustrated, lateral displacement of the working rolls 2 and 3 in one direction,-to the left in Fig. 1, toward the bearing shoes 10, 10,--is, substantially prevented because of the offset, above described, between the planes that contain, respectively, the working roll axes and the backing-up roll' axes. In the other direction however, there is nothing to prevent such lateral displacement except the bearing shoes 11, 11 which engage the ends of each roll,-and it is apparent that only by constant and careful adjustment of these. bearing 95 shoes can the rolls 2 and 3 be kept in approximately correct alinement.

According to my invention, such adjustment, inwardly or outwardly, of the bearing shoes 11, 11 is adapted to be secured by the operation, in one direction or the other, of suitable motors, which are subject to separate manual control, whereby a condition of exact alinement of the roll axes may be readily established, as hereinafter described.

Furthermore, according to my invention, these of a rollbecomes displacedlaterally, there is at once automatically inaugurated an operation of the associated motor, to restore the roll to a condition of true axial alinement with the other roll.

As shown in Fig. 1, each bearing shoe 11 (there being two for each roll, one at either end) is movable in or out by a screw 12 which is turnable in the side of the housing 1 to produce lateral movement of the shoe. Each screw 12 is connected by suitable gearing 13 to a reversible driving motor 14, here shown as of the direct current type, said motor being operable, as hereinafter described, to move its associated bearing shoe inwardly or outwardly, as the case may be, for the positioning and maintenance of the rolls 2 and 3 in correct axial alinement.

Referring now to Figs. 3 and 4, each end of each roll 2, 3 has disposed in operative relation to its periphery a contact shoe 15, the latter being suitably mounted for limited pivotal movement on an arm 16 having a' fixed pivot 17 in proximity to said shoe. The arm 16 is preferably of consider- .able length beyond the connection point of said shoe 15 thereto, in order to multiply, at its free end, any movement imparted by lateral displacement of the associated roll 2 or 3. At its free end,

' each arm 16 carries an electrical contact member 18, yieldable thereon as indicated in Fig. 4, which is adapted to cooperate with a stationary electrical contact 19 in the completion of an electrical circuit for operating, in the manner hereinafter described, one of the adjusting motors 14. Each contact 19, as shown in Fig. 4, is adjustably carried by a fixed bracket 20, and normally, in the absenceof lateral displacement of the associated working roll, there is a gap or space between said contacts 18 and 19. In the event of lateral displacement, such as to press an end of either working roll against one of the contact shoes 15, the associated arm 16, in response to such pressure, will swing outwardly and engage its contact 18 with the stationary contact 19, this engagement being maintained by the yielding of contact 18 until the associated motor 14 has corrected the lateral displacement of the working roll, whereupon the arm 16 will resume its normal position under the influence of gravity to separate the two contacts 18 and 19 and thereby stop the motor.

The wiring diagram of Fig. 5 illustrates the electrical connections. by which the several motors 14, 14 are operated, both by manual and by automatic control, for the adjustment of the bearing shoes 11, 11 to establish correct axial alinement of the working rolls 2 and 3, and to correct said alinement whenever any lateral displacement of said working rolls occurs. As shown in said diagram, 9. suitable source of electrical supply, as indicated at 2 1, is made available, through the closing of a switch 22, for the supply of current to four separate motor circuits 23, 23 connected in parallel to said supply 21. The several circuits 23, 23 are identical, and therefore a description of the same in connection with one of said motors will suffice for all. As shown, each circuit 23 divides itself into two parts, one of which, as completed by the closing of a contactor or relay device 24, serving for the actuation of the associated motor in one direction, and the other part, as completed by the closing of a contactor or relay device 25, serving for the actuation of the motor 14 in the opposite direc tion. The respective contactors or relays 24 and 25 are controlled, in the usual manner, by the energization of their associated coils or windings 26 and 2'7; one terminal of each of said windings is connected to one side of the supply 21, (here shown as the minus side), and the other terminal of each of said windings 26 and 2'7 is adapted, as hereinafter described, to be connected, selectively, to the plus side of the line for the manual control of the adjusting motors 14, 14 in the following manner:--

As shown in Fig. 5, a switch 28, when thrown to the right, connects the plus side of the line in parallel with four individual switches 29, 29, each of which is shown in a neutral or inoperative position. When such a switch 29 is swung to the right (assuming the switch 28 to be in its right hand position), the coil or winding 26 is energized, thereby closing the contactor 24 and causing the flow of current to the motor 14 in such a direction as, in the present instance,

will rotate its screw 12 outwardly, thereby retracting the bearing shoe 11 from the periphery of the associated working roll 2 or 3, as the case may be. On the other hand, when the switch 29 is thrown to the left, the coil 27 is energized, thereby closingthe contactor 25 and causing current to fiow to the motor 14 in the other direction, whereby said motors rotation is in such a direction as to rotate the screw 12 inwardly, thereby thrusting the bearing shoe against the working roll. In the neutral or central position of the switch 29, neither coil 26 or 27 is energized, and both contactors 24 and 25 remain open, so that no current flows to the motor 14. The above described mechanism and electrical connections constitutes a manually controlled means for the several motors 14, 14, by which the initial setting of the rolls 2 and 3 in correct" axial alinement may be readily secured,-the motors 14, 14 being operated to screw the bearing shoes 11, 11 at each end of each roll in or out as desired until the correct alinement is established and the proper pressures of said shoes against said roll surfaces are set up. When this has been done,' the apparatus is shifted over to automatic control in the following manner:

Each adjustable contact 19 is first set in slightly spaced relation to its corresponding contact 18, such that any slight displacement at the end of the associated roll 2 or 3 will cause engagement of said contacts. The several switches 29, 29 being all then in their neutral or inoperative positions as shown, the switch 28 is swung from its right hand manual-control position into its left hand or automatic-control position, where it connects the plus side of the line, as shown, in parallel with each of the four arms l6, 16. Each of the contactor coils or windings 27, 27, with one terminal thereof connected as above described to the minus side of the line, has its other terminal permanently connected, as shown at 30, in Fig- 5, to one of the stationary contacts 19. Therefore, if any wear of a bearing shoe 11, or any undue pressure set up by the rolling operation, causes either end of either roll 2, '3 to be displaced laterally, toward the right in Fig. 1, the resultant pressure of said roll end, on the adjacent shoe 15, procures an immediate engagement of the corresponding contacts 18 and 19, thereby completing the circuit through the particular coil or winding 27 to which those contacts are related. This closes the contactor or relay 25, causingthe associated motor to run in such a direction as will 1,958,165 mal position of correct axial alinement. Coincident with such restoration, the arm 16, which follows the roll back to normal position, carries the contact 18 away from the contact 19,thereby deenergizing the coil 27 and opening the contactor 25, whereupon the motor 14 ceases to rotate.

Owing to the yielding of contact 18 on its arm 16 when it engages the stationary contact 19, the circuit through the particular coil or winding 27 to which the contact 19 is connected is maintained an appreciableperiod long enough to cause the associated motor to start and turn its screw 12 far enough to return the displaced roll to the position of correct axial alinement. Obviously, the amount which the contact 18 yields, as well as the period of contact engagement, is dependent upon the initial setting of the adjustable stationary contact 19 with. respect to the contact 18 whenthe arm 16 is in the position which it occupies with the associated roll in correct axial alinement, as shown in Fig. 3. As a result, the device is adapted for close adjustment to meet different operating conditions of the rolling mill.

I claim,

1.. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll having an adjustable bearing, a reversible motor operable to adjust said bearing in opposite directions, and means responsive to deflection of the axis of said roll from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel for procuring the operation of said motor, thereby to move said hearing into a position where said right angle relation is reestablished.

2. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll having an, adjustable bearing, a reversible motor operable to adjust said bearing in opposite directions, means responsive to deflection of the axis of said roll from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel for procuring the operation of said motor, thereby to move said bearing into a position where said right angle relation is reestablished, said means being automatically operable to discontinue the operation of saidmotor upon the reestablishment of said right angle relation.

3. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a normallyinoperative contact device associated with said roll and made operative when the axis of said roll undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel,

and means responsive to the operative condition of said contact device for restoring the normaL position of said roll axis.

4. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, an end bearing for said roll, a normally-inoperative contact device adjacent said bearing and made operative by the displacement or said roll from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means responsive to the operative condition of said contactqdevice for shifting said bearing to restore normal relation of said roll. 5. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, laterally adjustable bearings for said roll, normally-inoperative contact devices associated with said roll near each end thereof, one or the other or said devices being made operative when said roll undergoes lateral displacement from its normal -position, and means responsive to such operative condition of a contact device for laterally adjusting one of said bearings, thereby to restore the normal position of said roll.

6.'In a rolling mill, a reducing roll having a laterally adjustable bearing, a reversible motor for moving said bearing inor out, and means responsive to lateral displacement of said roll from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel for procuring the operation of said motor.

7. In a rolling mill, a pairof cooperating rolls for shifting the roll by said action of the motor,

v until the roll axis resumes its normal position. I

9. In a rolling mill, a pair of reducing rolls adapted to operate with their axes in parallelism, bearings for said rolls, a normally-inactive motor, means responsive to the crossing of said axes for initiating action of said motor, and means for transmitting to a bearing of one of said rolls the action of said motor, to restore the uncrossed relation of said roll axes. "1 I 10., In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a reversible motor normally maintained inoperative, means set in action, in one direction. or the other, by the displacement of said roll, in one direction or the other, from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel for operating said motor, and means for producing lateral motion of said roll by said action of said motor, thereby to restore said roll to its normal position.

11. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a member associated with said roll and 'freely movable thereby when the axis of said roll undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means automatically responsive to said freely movable memher when actuated by the roll for forcibly restoring the normal position of said roll axis by pressure exerted on the roll opposite to the direc-- tion of roll displacement.

12. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, a member near each end thereof, both of said members being stationary when the roll axis occupies its normal right angle relation to the direction of 13. In a rolling mill, a reducing roll, an end bearing for said roll, a member adjacent said bearing and freely movable by said roll when the latter undergoes displacement from its 'normat right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and means responsive to said freely movable member when actuated by the roll for automatically shifting said'be'aring just enough to restore said normal right angle relation of the roll to stock travel.

14. In a rolling mill, areducingroll, an end bearing .for said roll, a member adjacent said bearing and freely movable by said roll when the normal position of said the latter undergoes displacement from its normal right angle relation to the direction of stock travel, and meansresponsive to said fre mov.

of said power actuated means for shifting the roll until the roll axis resumes its normal position.

16. In a rolling mill, a pair of reducing rolls adapted to operate with their axes in parallelism, power actuated means associated with each roll and normally maintained inoperative, and means responsive to crossing ofthe roll axes to automatically set one of said power actuated means in operation for shifting one of said rolls and thereby restore the uncrossed relation of said roll axes.

JEROME R. GEORGE. 

